Cannabis Law
Missouri Courts Consider Whether Probation Can Be Revoked for Marijuana Use
by Dan Viets, J. D., contributing writer
When we drafted Article XIV, Section 2, the Missouri Constitutional Amendment which legalized adult use of marijuana and was passed by the voters of Missouri in November of 2022, we made sure to say very clearly that neither probation, nor parole, nor pretrial release could be revoked by any Missouri court solely because of legal marijuana use. Ever since it passed, some Missouri judges have been desperately seeking some way to evade and violate that clear mandate in our Constitution.
Every Missouri lawyer swears an oath every year to uphold both the U. S. Constitution and the Missouri Constitution. It is, therefore, discouraging to see some Missouri Judges do precisely the opposite.
I was contacted a couple of years ago by Sharon Stewart, who is a Missouri medical marijuana patient. She was placed on probation for a misdemeanor offense. She continued to use her medicine while on probation.
Her probation officer accused her of violating probation. The judge in her case initially took no action, but the second time a violation report was filed, he chose to act. He sentenced her to serve two days in jail as a consequence of this alleged probation violation, but he also offered to stay the execution of that two-day sentence if she would appeal his ruling.
The judge clearly invited her to take his decision up on appeal. Many Missouri judges are looking for guidance( and cover) from the court of appeals in our state, so that they can do what they have sworn to do: uphold the Missouri Constitution.
After hearing from Sharon, I contacted the Missouri American Civil Liberties Union( ACLU) and asked if they would take on her case. They did so.
The ACLU has filed repeated Motions attempting to get the Missouri appellate court to issue an Order that the Missouri Constitution should be obeyed. The Southern Division of the Missouri Court
of Appeals has so far managed to duck that issue. They have declined to make a ruling in the matter, citing legalistic technicalities, which allegedly deprived them of jurisdiction.
The ACLU tried again by filing a Motion for injunctive relief with the Cole County Circuit Court in Jefferson City. As they anticipated, the Cole County Circuit Judge, Christopher K. Limbaugh( yes, he is related to Rush and other members of the Limbaugh family of Cape Girardeau), issued a ruling after receiving briefs from the parties in the case. He ordered the Plaintiff’ s Petition for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief“ dismissed without prejudice.”
This means that, although the Petition is dismissed for the time being, it could be filed again. That ruling was issued on March 16, 2026.
On April 24, the ACLU filed a Notice of Appeal with the Cole County Circuit Court. The record on appeal is due to be filed with the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western
District in Kansas City within 90 days of April 27. After that briefing will take place, and oral arguments may be scheduled.
It is likely to be several more months before we have a decision from the Western District Court of Appeals. Meanwhile, Missouri cannabis consumers are left in limbo, uncertain whether they will face revocation of their probation, parole, or pretrial release because of legal use of marijuana, despite the clear prohibition on doing so in our Missouri Constitution.
We will continue to follow this case and update our readers.
Dan Viets, J. D., is the Missouri Coordinator for NORML, the National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws. He has practiced law throughout the state of Missouri for 40 years. He can be contacted at danviets @ gmail. com.
10 JULY 2026